Discuss Pellegrini (Pt 2)

[without a dream]

Pellegrini gambled on getting a win in Moscow, but if luck had been against us we could have drawn or lost.

I really don't know what the subs were all about - all were 'like for like' replacing our better players with inferior ones. I guess he must be 'lucky' to have come out of that unscathed. Under Mancini if we were in the lead with 20 mins to go the game would be shut down and we would not lose (only one exception to this in a competitive game from memory) under Pellegrini you just don't know what is going to happen. We need to score 3 away from home to be sure of a win and that is for certain.

Honestly I can't see us winning the Prem or getting much further than the last 16 in the CL without far better use of substitutes and tactics than were shown last night. For example, he revisited the high defensive line last night and it nearly cost us on three occasions.

So far, as you may gather, I am not particularly impressed.

We will see on Sunday if my fears are justified.

He obviously went like for like to keep a bit of freshness about players who will start on Sunday, and to keep the system the same because we looked like we were going to score every time we attacked. He's clearly a very bold manager who thinks that if you are a better team you should stay on the front foot instead of inviting teams on.

DD my only concern is Chelsea will play on the counter. Would you play an extra midfielder and play Yaya in an advanced role with Negredo on the bench

I would, based on what we've seen so far I'm convinced Pellegrini won't. It will be an exciting game but we'll need to be clinical, you can't keep missing great chances against good sides.

 

[Nelly's Left Foot]

we need Vinnie and Demi back to really see if this setup is going to work in a defensive sense.

The same thinking here, would be interesting to see them operate together in tandem .

I like the idea that we NEED Demi back when he hasn't actually ever played for us!

 

[supercity88]

Pellegrini has a philosophy and sticks to it. He is a bold manager and has faith in his and his teams ability. He does not sacrifice his sides quality for fear of the other team. Last night he wanted to win and did. When it comes to major cup games with two legs he will alter things, he will play with a more defensive mindset away and play with more freedom at home. In one off games he looks to win. City fans are guilty of being a bit too cautious themselves, if we had have set up with a 5 man midfield in Moscow we would have struggled to create as many chances as we did. We should have been out of sight in that game and deserved the win.

Against Chelsea Pellegrini will know we can win. Mourinho is generally very negative in the big games. He likes to defend first and will keep things tight. The last thing we want to do is play into his hands by also playing a 4-5-1 as we will just be playing a dire game with no attacking intention. Just like the Chelsea game away at the swamp where Chelsea could have got all 3points had they been more positive. If we play a 4-4-2 we will concede chances but we will create a lot more and with Aguero in the form he is, Negredo looking lively and Silva looking class once more we will score goals. I just hope Kompany is back. The mere mention of Garcia makes me shiver! He has done okay but a City side with Kompany at the back is a much tougher proposition. With Garcia playing, both teams will fancy their chances against the others defence. Our midfield and striking options are better. And we have shown multiple times we can cope with Hazard, Oscar and Mata and that their defence cannot cope with our attacking options. I think Pellegrini will again go and be positive and that we will win the game.

 

[NipHolmes]

really - This guy is an improvement on Mancini football wise - some glaring misses last night - this would have been an easy stroll

For me it was a relatively easy stroll. CSKA deserved fuck all and got fuck all. All the ifs and buts about the chances they created are irrelevant unless you also acknowledge the sackful of chances we created to really kill the game off.

We're getting better with each passing match IMO, particularly as players like Negredo and Fernandinho find their feet in the starting XI.

I fear for Chelsea on Sunday. Those players know we have the beating of them, and more importantly, our players know they have the beating of them. I expect a win and for people to finally start sitting up and taking notice of the fact that we're the team comfortably the best equipped to win this league.

Exactly what I have been thinking. Personally I'd have played Milner yesterday and saved Navas for Sunday as he will have his work cut out. I fancy a win v Chelsea but expect a very defensive game from Jose and we must watch out for Hazard and Oscar who will be there go to guys imo. A three man midfield is crucial.


--------------------Fernandinho----------------------
-----------Milner------------------Yaya----------------
Navas----------------Aguero-------------------Silva

We would dominate the midfield and have Milner and Fernandinho tracking back which will be our hardest task.

Not fearful one bit of Chelsea, I think they are definitely beatable and the trick is to penalise Luiz for any bad positioning or lackadaisical passes.

 

[Kazzydeyna]

I've been critical of MP quite a bit this season. Part of that was the fact that I was seething with the shoddy way the dismissal of RM was handled. But to be fair MP didn't cause or ask for any of that, he wasn't even here when it was happening.

We won away last night in the champs lge, for the second time this season.

I think we'll beat Chelsea on Sunday or at least not lose.

Do I wish we hadn't sacked RM..? Truthfully yes. But that's tough luck on me because we DID. Is it MP's fault?.. No.

I was impressed with city last night, and have been for a few games now. If we get through the group stage (which we should now) and challenge for the title (which we look eminently capable of doing) then for me it has been a good first season in charge.

I'll always love bobby, nothing anyone on here could say will ever change that, but I'm finding a lot of respect for Pelli and desperately want him to succeed and prove the early season me wrong. And I think he will.

Onwards and upwards.

 

[cibaman]

We've played the same system, formation and tactics in all 12 competitive games. There are some obvious benefits to this, its enabled Pellegrini to bed his system in quickly. It demonstrates confidence. And when we're on song it results in brilliant performances.

But on Sunday we're up against the best manager in the world at exploiting his opponents weaknesses. One thing that can be guaranteed is that, if we play exactly the same way again, Mourinho will have a plan as to how to expose our defense.

I'm sure we'll see some brilliant performances this season. But I can't see us winning the league or progressing much beyond the group stage of the CL unless we show greater tactical flexibility.

 

[Anonymous]

We've played the same system, formation and tactics in all 12 competitive games. There are some obvious benefits to this, its enabled Pellegrini to bed his system in quickly. It demonstrates confidence. And when we're on song it results in brilliant performances.

But on Sunday we're up against the best manager in the world at exploiting his opponents weaknesses. One thing that can be guaranteed is that, if we play exactly the same way again, Mourinho will have a plan as to how to expose our defense.

I'm sure we'll see some brilliant performances this season. But I can't see us winning the league or progressing much beyond the group stage of the CL unless we show greater tactical flexibility.

Does this mean if we beat Chelsea on Sunday we in fact have the best manager in the world? :)

Seriously though ... you seem to be talking about flexibility for the sake of it. Ultimately there's two ways based on the PL currently ... you play with a three man midfield, or a two man midfield. Some managers switch between the two, whilst others have one way and stick to it dogmatically. Neither way is the right way, they're just different way.

One thing I think people need to forget about, is the idea that Pellegrini will ever go into a game playing with 3 pure central midfield players (any three from Fernandinho, Yaya, Rodwell, Milner, Garcia). It may be that we see at some point a 4231 with with Silva/Nasri/Navas or Jovetic behind a lone forward, but never the kind of 3 man wall that more negative managers would employ. Anc certainly not against an inferior to team to ours like Chelsea.

 

[Braggster]

We've played the same system, formation and tactics in all 12 competitive games. There are some obvious benefits to this, its enabled Pellegrini to bed his system in quickly. It demonstrates confidence. And when we're on song it results in brilliant performances.

But on Sunday we're up against the best manager in the world at exploiting his opponents weaknesses. One thing that can be guaranteed is that, if we play exactly the same way again, Mourinho will have a plan as to how to expose our defense.

I'm sure we'll see some brilliant performances this season. But I can't see us winning the league or progressing much beyond the group stage of the CL unless we show greater tactical flexibility.

Very good analysis. There's quite a lot of the Arsene Wenger in Pellers...no bad thing IMO. Wenger has his faults but I don't think it's absurd to suggest that he's as good a coach, in his own way, as Mourinho. (Though I suspect that is very much a minority view!)

I do agree that Pellegrini's approach potentially leaves us exposed to a Mourinho masterplan on Sunday. That's a worry and it will be interesting to see what, if any, adjustments Pellegrini makes to cope with that risk.

 

[I'm no cynic but...]

Pellegrini gambled on getting a win in Moscow, but if luck had been against us we could have drawn or lost.

I really don't know what the subs were all about - all were 'like for like' replacing our better players with inferior ones. I guess he must be 'lucky' to have come out of that unscathed. Under Mancini if we were in the lead with 20 mins to go the game would be shut down and we would not lose (only one exception to this in a competitive game from memory) under Pellegrini you just don't know what is going to happen. We need to score 3 away from home to be sure of a win and that is for certain.

Honestly I can't see us winning the Prem or getting much further than the last 16 in the CL without far better use of substitutes and tactics than were shown last night. For example, he revisited the high defensive line last night and it nearly cost us on three occasions.

So far, as you may gather, I am not particularly impressed.

We will see on Sunday if my fears are justified.

Your post is overly pessimistic. Whilst I accept that Chelsea is the big one, the fact that City have scored 31 goals and conceded just 13, a whopping GD of +18 in only 12 games, this should be giving you a warm feeling of gratitude over the way that the season is shaping up.

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Pellegrini gambled on getting a win in Moscow, but if luck had been against us we could have drawn or lost.

I really don't know what the subs were all about - all were 'like for like' replacing our better players with inferior ones. I guess he must be 'lucky' to have come out of that unscathed. Under Mancini if we were in the lead with 20 mins to go the game would be shut down and we would not lose (only one exception to this in a competitive game from memory) under Pellegrini you just don't know what is going to happen. We need to score 3 away from home to be sure of a win and that is for certain.

Honestly I can't see us winning the Prem or getting much further than the last 16 in the CL without far better use of substitutes and tactics than were shown last night. For example, he revisited the high defensive line last night and it nearly cost us on three occasions.

So far, as you may gather, I am not particularly impressed.

We will see on Sunday if my fears are justified.

He obviously went like for like to keep a bit of freshness about players who will start on Sunday, and to keep the system the same because we looked like we were going to score every time we attacked. He's clearly a very bold manager who thinks that if you are a better team you should stay on the front foot instead of inviting teams on.

DD my only concern is Chelsea will play on the counter. Would you play an extra midfielder and play Yaya in an advanced role with Negredo on the bench

Much less of a concern with vinny back. I'd go into this game with clichy and Richards at full back and is put Milner in for navas to solidify the midfield.

I only have one slight concern with the way we are going about things and its central midfield and yaya's inability to tackle and play in tight spaces. Chelsea could exploit that, but they won't fancy holding off silva, aguero and negredo in their form.